ADC Therapeutics raises US$200m in private financing
Swiss cancer antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) developer ADC Therapeutics Sarl (Epalinges) has raised US$200m million through an oversubscribed private placement. Investors include Auven Therapeutics, Redmile, the Wild Family Office and its development partner AstraZeneca.
The proceeds will be used to progress the company’s lymphoma drug candidates ADCT-301 and ADCT-402 into planned registrational trials in 2018. Both candidates are currently in four clinical studies in relevant sub-types of lymphoma and leukemia.
ADCT-301 combines HuMax®-TAC, a monoclonal antibody targeting CD25 (the alpha chain of the IL-2 receptor) created by Genmab A/S, a biotechnology company, based in Copenhagen, Denmark, with a highly potent pyrrolobenzodiazepine (PBD)-based warhead. The company says that ADCT-301 showed promising anti-tumour activity preclinically, outperforming Seattle Genetics’ approved ADC drug brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris). ADCT- ADCT-402 is a similar construct targetting CD19, a surface protein expressed throughout B-cell development on nearly all B-cell malignancies in many non- Hodgkin lymphomas.
ADC Therapeutics announced it will also advance ADCT-301 into a combination study for solid tumors and will continue the development of the Phase I assessment of ADCT-502 in patients with advanced Her2-positive solid tumours. Furthermore, the company wants to file INDs for ADCT-602 and ADCT-601, and to progress unpublished preclinical pipeline programmes.
Dr. Chris Martin, CEO of ADC Therapeutics, said: "With more than 250 patients dosed, and encouraging data to be presented at the upcoming congress of the American Society of Hematology, this financing is a key step in our strategy and will enable us to accelerate our lead programs and to continue to develop our pipeline."? Since ist inception by major shareholder Auven Therapeutics in 2012, ADC Therapeutics has raised US$455m to advance its pipeline of proprietary ADCs.
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